Media release

Duty of care for doctors in disasters

AMA Position Statement on Ethical Considerations for Medical Practitioners in Disaster Response in Australia

The AMA today released its revised Position Statement on Ethical Considerations for Medical Practitioners in Disaster Response in Australia.

The Position Statement outlines a doctor’s duty of care in disasters, including natural and man-made disasters, pandemics, and terrorist activities.

AMA President, Dr Steve Hambleton, said today that doctors and other health professionals are regularly called upon to help people directly or indirectly affected by an emergency or disaster.

“Doctors must respond to the immediate health needs of people affected by the disaster, and manage any associated long-term health effects in the population,” Dr Hambleton said.

“During a disaster, doctors may face difficult and ethical dilemmas that do not arise in normal clinical practice.

“For example, there may be limited resources immediately available in relation to a large number of sick or injured people in various states of health, and the doctor has to prioritise which people receive treatment over others.

“This could involve making a decision not to actively treat a gravely ill or injured person in the prevailing circumstances in order to treat others who can be saved.

“In these situations, doctors also have a duty to protect themselves from significant harm, so they should not be expected to exceed the bounds of reasonable personal risk.

“In order to ensure the medical profession’s preparedness to respond to a disaster, the medical profession must be involved in the development, implementation, and review of disaster response protocols,” Dr Hambleton said.

The AMA Position Statement on Ethical Considerations for Medical Practitioners in Disaster Response in Australia is at https://ama.com.au/position-statement/ethical-considerations-medical-practitioners-public-health-emergencies-australia

The AMA has two other related Position Statements – the Position Statement on Involvement of GPs in Disaster and Emergency Planning 2012 and the Position Statement on Supporting GPs in the Aftermath of a Natural Disaster 2012.

 


1 April 2014

 

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                          Kirsty Waterford                 02 6270 5464 / 0427 209 753

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